Assault on Touphan
by Englishdragon10
Summary: Sgt Lenz was part of a crack sentinel company. "The lastratian 4th Nightstalkers." Their fame made them valued to the imperium and so set for stealth missions deep into enemy territory. However,the same fame brought an unexpected and potentially unwanted development to their long record of successes...
1. Imperium

"Magos, what is my next task?" Beeped one of the several artisans, who were scurrying around beneath Tech Magos Harakai's observation throne.

The Magos let off a sharp burst of binary at the artisan who bowed, and retreated back into the maze of cables, machines and generators that occupied nearly the entire floor of the Magus's research laboritorum. If he didn't have to keep the damn room accessible to the inspections by the crude bipedal grunts of his peers he'd not even have this area of the room clear. As it was there was a three meter radius around his throne that allowed unskilled bodies to enter and converse without electrocuting themselves and damaging the equipment in the process.

The human aspect of the Magos sighed; "Such a waste of space!" He thought whilst his cyber portion filed another message into his primary cognitive region, and brought it to the human mind's attention. "Hm?" Harakai muttered as the message displayed itself over his virtual vision. His flesh eye glazed over as his human side concentrated solely on the contents of the message, whilst the rest of him was altering an irritatingly large chunk of programming that was taking far too long to finish properly. He read the message once, twice then three times, just to make sure he hadn't missed anything.

The cybernetic system situated at the top of his spinal column detected the incoming extreme emotion and successfully detached the data feeds and released the latches attaching him to the throne, just as Harakai leapt into the air in pure ecstasy that even his powerful logic engine was unable to suppress. His emotion seized control of his mechandentrites and as fast as lightning he sprung out into the maze of machinery, limbs both of flesh and metal all propelling the ecstatic Magos through the labyrinth of cold steel that he knew so well. With a 'whoop' he swung up onto the walkway that crossed his domain, scattering a group of scribes and sending a stack of paper flying out of the hands of a menial as he flew past in his human ecstasy. The servants of the administratum shook their heads in bewilderment as their honoured master bounded down the corridor, whooping childishly as he went.

Eventually the logic systems of his cybernetic side managed to suppress the emotion enough to reduce his pace to a brisk walk and his display of emotion down to a manic smile.

Harakai took a deep breath as he strolled past the queue of subordinates and knocked directly on the Chief Magi's whilst his cybernetic conscience slyly snaked a mechandentrite into a node at the side of the door, reported directly to the conscience of the Chief Magos, and concealed the instantaneous conversation that followed from the distracted mind of Harakai, as he finished the movement of knocking on the door.

Chief Magos Mantifar finished his sentence to the subordinate at the other side of his desk, before dismissing him and allowing Harakai into his office. As the Magos approached, Mantifar digested the information that he had just weaned from Harakai's cybernetic conscience. As unusual as it was, Harakai was not in fact best described as one person, as although his cybernetic systems shared all inputs and knowledge with the Human conscience and vice versa; they actually thought separately. This was due solely to Harakai's bloodline; he was the son of a planetary governor and would have been destined for a life in either the guard or a high ranking position in the administratus if it weren't for the event that destroyed a large portion of his brain.

Thankfully an organisist genetor was in the room at the moment it happened, after the governor's body guards had removed the stylus that had impaled his eye when he fell, the genetor thrust his manipulator probe into the socket and blocked the literal 'Short circuiting of his brain' by sending impulses of his own to replace them. Although the bodyguards had to restrain the governor from killing the genetor with his bolt pistol, the genetor successfully saved the young man's life and the governor's position allowed for a bio-mechanical operation that both saved the young man's life and gave him a cybernetic portion to his mind.

However the operation didn't go as smoothly as planned, his body rejected the implant and only the immediate mind wipe from the mechanicus surgeon stopped him from destroying his own mind. The surgeon was going the end the man's life and thus be able to salvage the cybernetic node when the genetor intervened once again. He produced a prototype device that had only just been cleared by the mechanicus adepts for practical use. The device was both flesh and metal and allowed a prosthetic bridge to be made across the gap between the cybernetic implant and the brain of the young governor's son.

The device worked and the man recovered. However the mechanicus were not about to allow the device to be put into use by anyone not within the adept themselves so after overriding even the wishes of a planetary governor the young Harakai was screened for service in the mechanicus.

His mind was found to possess a very powerful trait that made him perfect for work refining and adapting recovered STC data for use by the forges of the cult of Mars. Also, the separation of his two minds allowed him to see problems from both angles of interest, both from the practical perspectives perceived by mankind and from the technical perspectives perceived by the mechanicus. In short time the young man found himself a Magos in charge of a data refining facility within a STC complex of the forge world of Ryza.

All this information shot through the refined mind of the Chief Magos as he regarded his approaching Magos who still was mainly controlled by his emotion and given away by the pronounced spring in his step.

"So Magos Harakai, have the powers that be allowed you to view the STC data you wanted?" Mantifar smirked as his binary transmitter blared at the Magos who stood beaming before him.

"No Lord. They haven't." Harakai replied in gothic, using his vocal chords rather than the binary transmitter mounted to the side of his augmented skull.

Mantifar's smiled faded. "Then what are you grinning about?" He replied in kind.

"They have given me a permit to copy and augment the data I wanted."

"Stop lying Harakai, it is forbidden to alter the truth within these halls" the Chief Magos scolded. He blinked as his virtual vision displayed the message forwarded by Harakai

Mantifar's metallic jaw dropped, and it was only his augmented conscience that allowed him control over his vocal chords; "H- How? Why? – What!" He stuttered in his amazement. His machine spirits flew out into the cyberspace and confirmed the information. "What exact STC was it you requested again?"

"The Lucius pattern sentinel." Harakai replied.

"What grade of augmentation, did they grant you?" The Chief Magos demanded. Even I haven't ever been granted an augmentation pass in all my time serving in the mechanicus, and yet here was Harakai. Barely seventy years out of his rite of passage and being allowed to- to- toy with a sacred STC file, left from our predecessors!

"Still." He thought. "It's still an augmentation pass within my unit! This'll get me bragging rights over that upstart Malchior in the next block..."

"Alright Harakai. I'm granting you a requisition tithe of 25,000 units for this. Be grateful for it. It's high time we used up our hoard of units that have stacked up from the lack of ingenuity in this section." Mantifar's machine spirits completed a hoard of forms and files and transferred the data over the Harakai to complete and input his own cybernetic signature.

Mantifar grinned at the reeling Harakai, as his emotion turned to shock at the volume offered to him. "25,000?" He questioned Malchior as he completed the forms.

"Yes, you've earned that permit, here's the resources." Malchior grinned at the stunned Magos. "Well get on with it then!" He ordered. "There's an expiry on the permit you know!"

The poor scribe had just recovered all the files and re-ordered then properly when he heard a re-invigorated 'whooping' from down the corridor. He sprung up and flattened himself against an alcove and shielded the precious documents from the hyper-ecstatic Magos as he flung himself off the walkway and into the mare's nest of his now augmentation laboritorum.

* * *

Lenz was briefly reflecting on his position as he waited for the convoy to arrive. His mother was a guardswoman, his father was a guardsman, they'd met in training and he'd been born en-route to a war zone, and was brought up by the survivors of the operation as his parents hadn't made it back. Lastratia was famous for its fast recon, and the best of those were its sentinels. His platoon were at the top of those groups and he was honoured to be among them. They were in and out fast, mission completed before the enemy had time to react, 'the rough recon' were what they'd become known. As they'd gone out of their way to engage fleeing forces despite it not being required, you never ran. Their motto was to hide not to run, and their actions reflected this.

A pip in his ear signalled that the pressure sensor set across the road ahead had been triggered; "Alright boys and girls, here they come, keep it quiet." Sergeant Lenz whispered into the vox channel, his voice barely audible amongst the chirping of the grass insects that were native to the agri-world of Vehnis-brom.

He peered through the dense undergrowth as headlights lit the road before him; he counted the sets of lamps and got seven. He could hear the distinct rumble of a chimera and the soft roar as they strained up the steep road towards the fortress.

"It's as the intel said." Reported Corporal Caito Macharia as she watched them through the NV gear her sentinel sported; "Two IFV's, 4 trucks and one APC. No supporting infantry."

"Wait for them to open the gates." Ordered Captain Jokarn. "Then we hit. Farok, are you aimed?"

"Yes sir." Replied Colour Sergeant Farok. "Locked and ready." This meant that he had aimed his sentinel's weapon at his designated target and locked the legs of his vehicle, so that his aim wouldn't veer.

Lenz's Squad was crouched down in a deep drainage ditch to the side of the road approaching the rebel fortress. It had taken them around three days to creep up to this position, right under the noses of the enemy, and just where they would least expect it.

This was the Lastratian 4th 'night stalkers' in their element; hit when they least expect you and therefore where they are at their most vunerable. Lenz grinned as he thought about this; "Oh yes."He thought. "We're good at this."

"Where are the IFV's positioned?" Sergeant Camran asked over the vox.

"One at the front, one at the back." Replied Caito. "Bet I can get through the back one with my multi." She added, eyeing the Chimera variant's rear door as she said it.

"Fine. We'll take the front one, you take the back one." Ordered Sergeant Camran.

"Agreed." Muttered Lenz; he nodded to Caito on his left and then to Yhaivan on his right as the first IFV trundled past, and waited for the order for attack.

"Lock and hold your fire." Murmured the captain, as he watched the convoy shudder to a halt, before the apparently impenetrable gates of the fortress. The fortress was all it was known as; one way in, one way out. It had been a thorn in the imperial's side for months, not strategic enough to warrant a full-scale attack but too well defended to allow a small one either. This is where the Lastratians came in. Lenz watched as the tank commander in front dismounted and answered the calls from the sentries, mission, purpose, password; all was answered in front of them. Then with a series of resounding thunks the enormous gates were opened.

Just as the first vehicle revved its engine to move in, an incandescent beam of light shot out and tore through an exposed power cable, attached to the underside of the gate. The gates ground to a halt and were now jammed open.

'Thud' 'Thud' 'Boom!' Lenz's autocannon opened up on the side armour of the IFV in front of him, and successfully ruptured the fuel tank, blasting the vehicle apart in one volatile instant. The Trucks were filled with ammunition and so exploded in a dramatic fashion as autorounds, high-powered lasers and lascannons beams tore through them in quick succession. Lenz blinked as the darkness was suddenly repulsed by the pyres that were now the remains of the convoy. He thrust his controls forward and propelled his sentinel forward in long loping steps towards the gates, even as the rest of the company opened up on the watchtower, and suppressed those sentries who weren't killed outright by the high calibre onslaught.

Acrid smoke filled the air, as the sentinels strode forwards; their weapons blazing as they swiftly traversed the gap between the forest and the fortress. Yhaivan boosted ahead of everyone else and closed fast on the gap as he wasn't needed to fire on the recovering enemies; as he reached the gates he burned anyone, who was unfortunate enough to be caught within the reach of his heavy flamer, and scoured the dirt of their heretical presence.

Lenz strode through the gates, and glanced around; it was a large open-air encampment, with barracks and hangars set out in neat rows. He could see the skyshield at the other side of the fortress, which was his target set by the captain. He called his squad around him, and they set off down the road in a loose arrowhead formation. Himself at the front, Caito on the right and Yhavian on the left scanning the buildings for movement. The fortress was deserted, there was no-one in sight. All that could be heard was the steady whining and thudding of their sentinels, as they advanced towards the airfield.

Lenz called a halt, and tapped his vox-bead. "Anyone see anything?" He asked.

Camran's voice returned; "nope, nothing. It's too quiet."

That was it. Camran had tempted fate, for no sooner had he said those a massive 'boom' filled the air. "Shit, what the hell was that?" Yelled Lykn. Before anyone could answer, a second explosion followed, along with the sound of something roaring through the air over them. "They're shells!" Someone yelled. "There's artillery here!"

"That explains the huge ammo convoy." Commented Lenz, as he thrust his sentinel into the fastest speed it could manage. "And where there's an artillery emplacement, there's a platoon or two protecting it!"

Captain Jokarn took command. "Let's split into two parts. First and second squad, go left and flank the position through the buildings. Third and Command, we'll attack head on and draw fire so that they can hit them hardest.

Lenz nodded grimly, he knew that the original plan was out the window, they'd have to think on their feet now. "Camran, you follow behind us! First squadron on me!" he yelled and walked his sentinel into a side road off the main parade street, mulling over strategies as he went. Lenz emerged out into another broad road and caught movement out of the corner of his eye, and screamed a warning as the basilisk fired direct at him, from about fifty meters away. The shell skimmed the side of his sentinel and impacted with a building behind him; however the sheer inertia of the earthshaker shell spun the sentinel to the side and catapulted it to the ground.

Caito yelled a harsh war cry as she watched her sergeant fall, and strode as fast as she could towards the basilisk, firing her multilaser at the artillery piece even as the heavy bolter and supporting infantry opened up on her. The shots of both vehicles missed and she strode out of the bolter's field of fire still firing with her own weapon. The lasers impacted with the barrel of the heavy bolter and detonated a round that was leaving the muzzle, exploding it there and rendering the weapon useless. She switched fire to the exposed infantry, and killed most of them outright as their small arms pattered usless again her hull. The crew of the basilisk tried to escape, but Camran's squad had flanked behind and cut off the fleeing heretics.

Four rounds impacted with the rear of the basilisk in quick succession, igniting the charge in one of the stacked shells, and blowing the rear of the basilisk off. More slugs tore the remaining infantry apart and Caito glanced backwards to see that her sergeant had shifted his fallen sentinel over with its legs and had opened fire with his autocannon.

Yhaivan approached the basilisk and stamped on the front of the vehicle's viewing window with his sentinel's metal foot, he opened a gash on the front of the tank and immediately let off a quick blast into it with his flamer incinerating the crew then he turned his back on it and left the burning vehicle to its fate.

Camran and Lykn strode up to Lenz's sentinel and used the barrel of their weapons to lift the body of his sentinel of the ground, allowing him to get his right leg underneath him and with the help of Naramok's multilaser, stood back up again. "Thanks guys," said Lenz. "Now let's get round their flank. They know we're here otherwise they wouldn't have set that ambush-." He was cut off by the distant sound of las-fire and the whooshing hiss of a plasma cannon's blasts. Captain Jokarn's voice came over the vox. "First and second, we're under fire, get here now!"

"On me, let's go!" Roared Camran as he thrust his sentinel past the basilisk and beyond it towards the sound of fighting.

The sounds of fighting got more deafening as they approached the artillery position; Camran turned round a barracks ahead and immediately backed up, firing his autocannon as he used the building as cover. "Contact!" He yelled "They're up on the containers!" Lenz strode past him and took up a similar position by a water tower on the other side of the street. He peered round the corner and saw that the rebels had fortified a row of shipping containers and were firing at a group of sentinels who were ducking and firing from the ruins of a building. An object shot over the battlefield, trailing a line of smoke behind it and impacted next to the sentinel with the plasma cannon. A barely audible message came over the vox on the captain's channel. "-issile look out!" The sound of a second explosion pierced into everyone's ear piece, followed by an enraged Jokarn's voice. "Take those missile teams out!" He bawled.

There was no way of approaching the emplacement whilst that missile position was still active. Lenz scanned around for an alternate route; he saw a tall building overlooking the emplacement and in line with the containers on which the teams were positioned. "First on me!" He yelled. "Camran, suppress them!"

Lenz drove his sentinel to its fastest speed as Camran's squad opened fire on the enemies and strode over to the towering structure, it may have been a hangar of some sort; he wasn't really sure. He walked into the building and looked up, there was a large conveyor belt of some sort leading up to the second floor, it wasn't activated and look sturdy enough, to support his sentinel.

He stepped up onto it and motioned for Caito and Yhavian to follow. They exchanged a look but followed their sergeant up the stationary belt. As they reached the top they found the floor was concrete and so sturdy enough for them to walk on; carefully and slowly Lenz approached an enormous window and look down on the rebels, who were scurrying around with ammunition, missiles and shells both for the artillery pieces and for the defenders. Caito and Yhavian took similar positions by the other windows, locked and aimed. Lenz opened fire at the defenders, his autocannon making short work of the infantry and their makeshift fortifications. Caito was strafing the running men below as they attempted to escape the rain of fire from above. Suddenly, Yhavian screamed a warning and backed away from the window he was observing from. Lenz caught a glimpse of the Earthshaker platform being turned around to face them just as its muzzle flashed and vaporised the wall in front of Yhavian in a horrendous explosion. Lenz knew instantly that Yhavian was dead.

Lenz struggled to keep grip on the concrete floor as it pivoted and sloped towards the ground below, then the wall collapsed and he was exposed to the exterior as it came crashing down around him. He glanced up and saw the ground creeping closer as the entire building fell towards the artillery pieces. He crouched and straightened the sentinel's legs in the largest hop he could manage as he tried to jump down onto the shipping containers; he felt himself in freefall as the sentinel dropped down a floor and landed on its feet with a jarring crash on the surface of the container. A flashing red light and warning tone told him that a leg servo had been damaged in the fall and was in danger of failing, he thrust the controls forwards again and stepped off the exposed container and managed to land on his feet a second time, as the rubble covered the container behind him.

As it crashed to the ground, the sentinel gave up with its punishment and the left leg failed; it went limp and the sentinel listed to the side before the auto-lock mechanism kicked in and the sentinel stalled; frozen in an awkward listing position. Lenz swore, and kicked at the leg pedals in an attempt to get the sentinel moving again; he flicked several switches in the cockpit and tried the pedals again. He had managed to override the leg's locking mechanism and although it may have repercussions later was able to use the leg in a limited capacity.

Lenz surveyed the scene, he was behind the containers, where the enemy had been moments ago, and he could hear calls from beneath the rubble as a few trapped heretics shouted for help. The deafening 'boom' and 'crack' of his platoon's heavy weapons still dominated the area. It wouldn't be long before they took this place out now the missile position had been destroyed and unintentionally buried.

Lenz started the engines again and turned his searchlight on, he lit a clear beam in the dust and smoke from the building. It was a mistake, any remaining heretics opened fire on his crippled sentinel with anything from lasguns to missiles, Lenz opened fire with his autocannon and the sentinel limped forwards, dragging its damaged leg slightly as it staggered ungainly.

Lenz's beam lit up a small group of heretics and they shielded their eyes, blinded by the intense light. His autocannon killed two immediately but the other four opened fire and scattered, most escaping the beam that blinded them. Lenz tracked one with his searchlight and killed him after a couple of missed shots.

With a defening explosion a missile impacted with the sentinel smack in the front of its armour, and the sentinel staggered back from the impact. Lenz tracked the smoke trail to the side of a container but the missile launcher must have moved after firing as he wasn't there now. Suddenly a second missile shot out of the gloom and impacted with the leg of the sentinel, there was no stopping it this time, the hydraulics had burst and so the sentinel toppled over, and landed with a crash on its side.

The wind was locked out of Lenz as he impacted with the ground; he spun the autocannon round and aimed roughly at where the shot came from, he then set it to fire automatically and bailed out of the cockpit, the scout sentinel's open canopy allowing him an easier escape than if he's been in the armoured version.

The autocannon kept firing and suppressed the missile launcher as he tried to reload. "The idiot's still firing he thought; I'll get him this time." He struggled to put another missile in the launch tube as his loader had been killed by the sentinels. He glanced round the corner as the rounds were now all impacting on the wall beyond the container he was using as cover. The sentinel was still firing wildly, and the missile trooper lined up his shot. "This one's for my planet." He murmered as he aimed carefully. He didn't even hear the pistol go off as the lasbeam impacted with the side of his head ending all further thoughts.

Lenz looked down at the corpse of the young heretic. "Better to end his life young." He thought. "He can't do much then." He looked up at the familiar sound of a sentinel's steps and watched Caito's sentinel negotiate its way down the rubble of the manufactorum.

Jokarn's voice blared into Lenz's earpiece. "All squads cease fire! Call in!"

Lenz replied immediately, scanning around for stragglers, as he held the channel open with his finger: "First squad checking in; two sentinels and a man down, sir. Still combat capable" He said, in an emotionless voice.

Camran's voice spoke; "Second checking in, all vehicles intact. We disrupted the power sir, the AA defences are down."

"Hanora here, Third all good."

"Command squad, one vehicle down. Pilot ok."

"Confirmed, all squads combat capable; Regroup at artillery installation, keep scanning, there may be survivors. Grammon! Call control and tell them the mission's accomplished!"

Lenz listened to Grammon as he called in the Valkyries, and slowly cleared the remaining area around the containers. He found plenty of bodies all bearing the same defaced uniforms and gear. "They deserved to die." He thought. "Yhavian would still be alive otherwise."

He emerged into the open ground and surveyed the scene of destruction before him; Roughly a platoon of infantry down, a fortress taken, and an enemy artillery position neutralised. All at the loss of three sentinels and one man. "Oh yes." He thought as he watched the sentinels spread out around him and clear the area as the sun rose. "We're good at this."


	2. Discovery

**Assault on Touphan**

**Chapter 2 - Discovery**

The sky shimmered with the thrusters of ships and explosions as yet another of the countless Ork vessels that tried to break the imperial line. The celestial frontline was three Terran Astronomical Units from here, but Ork vessels still managed to find their way through the gaps and present themselves in front of the legendary long range defences amassed around the planet.

Lenz watched the celestial fireworks display whilst he and the other sergeants waited for the briefing that would finally tell them why they were in orbit around the famed forge world. The bridge was packed with men; the sergeants, the captain, the ships bridge crew and the ships female navigator who sat meditating on a steel pedestal to one side of the rooms.

The ship's captain got up out of his throne and gestured to Captain Jokarn; "You may begin, captain." He said.

Jokarn nodded his thanks and stepped onto the throne leaning against its cast iron sides. "Gentlemen I expect you're all wondering why we're here above Ryza, none the least in the middle of a war, yes?"

The NCOs nodded curiosity clear on their faces.

Jokarn made a clicking noise with his tongue and sighed; "The truth is that I have very little idea either. The main reason I called this meeting is to try to work out why." He gazed around the room, and focused on Lenz. "Any ideas jumper?" He had assigned that nickname to Lenz after his escapade in the last mission.

Lenz held his gaze. "Why have they taken our sentinels, sir?"

Camran nodded in agreement. "Why remove the Lastratian 4th's vehicles? It's the only thing we're really good at! Sure we've got good maintenance crews and an awesome reputation, but nothing that a forge world wouldn't have already."

Jokarn gestured to the display outside. "Maybe we're needed in the war." He suggested.

Camran shook his head. "That still doesn't explain why they didn't bring the sentinels-"

"-or why we had to be brought here by a blockade runner." Hanorah cut in. "Why so fast? Why us? There are an infinite number of regiments out there who were closer and this frontline's nowhere near breaking point. Plus we don't have our best weapon!"

"Why us..." Thought Lenz. "Sir, I think Hanorah's hit it on the head."

"I have?" Said Hanorah. "I mean..."

"Continue Sergeant." Jokarn gestured to Lenz.

"Why us? We don't have our sentinels; we aren't useful in any other way. At least not to a forge world, but if they don't need the sentinels they must need the pilots instead." He gestured round the room. "Us."

* * *

Men and servitors skittered from the landing pad as the warning sirens blared, blast doors slammed shut and landing beacons lit up the night sky.

With a flash of light akin to a sun, the blockade runner emerged from the smog and fired all its landing rockets. Jets of fire shot out in odd directions as the crew expertly manoeuvred it using the thrusters and lightly set it down upon the ferrocrete surface.

As the dust settled servitors and men leapt back into action, securing landing lines and attacking fuel pipes to the behemoth whilst a large freight container was backed slowly onto the pad accompanied by a power-lifter sentinel.

The Lastratians were ushered quickly off the runner, The NCO's and Jokarn bearing only their personal belongings whilst the other lugged the other equipment. As they wandered out over the pad. Lenz spotted a red robed figure walking over to them; "Captain?" He gestured, and pointed out the figure to Jokarn who strode out to meet the envoy.

"Captain Jokarn?" Queried the figure, his face hidden by the hood over his head.

"Yes. Of the Lastratian 4th 'Night stalkers'. How can we be of-" Jokarn began.

"We don't usually allow **guardsmen**planet side." The envoy sneered, contempt dripping from his voice. "Follow me. Don't touch anything." With that the man in red Swooped round and started off towards the exit at a fast pace.

Jokarn grabbed his bag and strutted off after him, his pride obviously dented. Lenz sighed and grabbed the other end of a large equipment trunk with Caito. "1, 2, 3 – hup!" He said, and they heaved the heavy trunk after the envoy.

Lenz and Caito were glaring at the ground as they boarded the transport, their heavy trunk taking its toll as they dragged it across the metal ground. "Hmm a monorail." Caito muttered. "Not seen one of these in ages."

"I suggest you all sit down." Muttered the envoy, as he sat down it what appeared to be the driving seat. The transport seemed to be composed of a single box shaped area, larger than that of a chimera and with viewing ports behind each seat. The envoy suddenly blared a string of white noise, and the vehicle jolted suddenly.

Lenz could feel the motion, and peered out of his viewing port. He gaped at what he saw.

Lenz had seen nothing like it, he'd seen manufacturing worlds many times but nothing even close to the scale of this. As the monorail accelerated faster, the landscape changed from the space port to huge open molten furnaces, servitors dotted around the landscape, attending to menial tasks or laying dormant.

Everyone was plunged into half-light as the train entered a tunnel. The envoy turned and stated: "Welcome to Ryza." Light filled the train as they shot out of the dark.

"Whoa." Someone murmured.

The cityscape towered over them, Metal, pipes and machinery as far as the eye could see. Huge piston arms as big as space ships rocked back and forth on their mountings powering whatever contraption they were attached to. Cogs, pulleys and chimneys all gargantuan sized dotted the surface of the spire. And right at the top a glowing peak of white pulsed with energy.

The wasteland around them was filled with furnaces, scrap heaps, molten slag piles and factories. Just about anything industrial could be seen. A titan patrolled across the smog filled landscape, feet landing in perfect footprints which showed its perpetual endless route across the plains.

The spire loomed closer as the train still accelerated towards it. It was even bigger than Lenz thought.

"I suggest you avoid looking directly at the flashes once we get inside. We'll be passing directly through the Stormblade assembly line." Said the Envoy, still looking straight ahead.

"Stormblade?" Queried Lenz.

"Imagine a plasma cannoned Baneblade." Answered Jokarn. "They're deadly against the Orks."

Lenz looked right as they shot into the maze of pipes. They were going too fast and it was too dark to make out much but he caught a glimpse of what appeared to be a Baneblade but with a huge blue light pulsing where the cannon should be.

"Brace." Muttered the Envoy.

The monorail slammed on its brakes, screaming against the punishment and Lenz was reminded of the re-entry they'd just endured. Two men were thrown to the floor by the deceleration.

"..." Said Camran. His mouth moving but inaudible over the cacophony.

The monorail ground to a halt, outside a simple platform.

"Out." Said the Techpriest.

The platoon moaned and groaned as they recovered from the stop, then slowly disembarked, dragging their cases with them.

The Techpriest approached the enormous door which lead off the platform and unleashed another burst of static. A loud thud rang out, as the steel beams slid away from the door, it silently opened outwards, and they followed their guide in.

Lenz tried to keep track of their direction, as they took left and right turns for what seemed like an eternity, all the time wary as steam valves released and electricity buzzed around them in the gloom.

Then the passages began to open out even further, and more and more lights began to clear to gloom. Then suddenly they found themselves in a huge open area, as big as the cathedral of Lastratia. A cluster of figures were at the center of the room, Lenz couldn't help but feel a sense of trepidation as they crossed the exposed space.

Everything had turned silent, all they could hear was the whirring of their guide, and their own footsteps, the group's progress slowed as they all scanned for danger, life as a guardsman weaned out those who didn't.

Eventually they reached the cluster; Mechanical faces turn to look at them, eyes whirring as they focused on the guardsmen. They were mainly crude servitors, but a few incense bearing Techpriests were discussing something in the cluster.

"Ahem." Coughed Jokarn; he wasn't used to being ignored.

"I will be with you imminently Captain. I wasn't quite prepared to receive you just yet as your ship arrived early." Said the servitor standing next to Jokarn; the servitor wasn't doing anything, just staring dumbly at the captain, its mechanical eyes focused on his face. "You don't appear to be doing anything at the moment." He replied, glaring at the servitor.

"No he isn't." Said the voice again, this time from a servitor next to Lenz, who jumped as it spoke.

"But, I was." The crowd of servitors parted to allow the Magos to approach them.

He appeared to be around fifty years old, short white hair and with a mischievous grin and the twinkly eyes of an amiable old man, the left half of his forehead was cold metal, indented by blinking lights. He didn't wear the full red gown of a Techpriest; instead he seemed dressed more like a crude blacksmith. Oil stained gray overalls with red cuffs and collar. He had many pencils tucked into his chest pocket and his hands were tucked into a pouch on his front clutching what appeared to be a spanner. The only real thing that revealed him to be a high ranking member of the mechanicus was the many mechandentrites that sprouted from his back, and appeared to be looking at each man in turn.

He proffered his right hand to the captain, who shook it. "Tech Magos Generan Harakai." He said. "Welcome to Ryza, I'll apologise for the lack of emotion in advance, people around here don't tend to have much of that to their name."

He stood straight-backed and confidently, Lenz instantly had respect for him, and proffered his hand to relieve the speechless Captain; "Sergeant Lenz, nice to meet you." We're the Lastratian 4-"

"Night stalkers. Yes I know." Answered the Magos, as he shook Lenz's hand and proffered the rest of the guardsmen his mechandentrites to shake. "I'm the one that called you here guardsmen."

* * *

They were all seated in a briefing room, "_the Imperium must mass fabricate these things as they all look the same._" thought Lenz. Harakai was stood in front ready to start the briefing. "_Maybe we'll finally get some answers._" Thought Lenz.

"Ok." Began Harakai. "Before I start, you have to know that you are no longer in the imperial guard, your names have been removed from the system and are now part of the mechanicus." The shocked expressions of the guardsmen caused him to pause. "Don't worry this won't change much in the slightest, well in order to pass this through the system I had to register you all as tech-adepts, but! You are all still the Lastratian 4th, and shall remain so, you merely answer to the mechanicus first."

"So we don't get a say in this then?" Growled Jokarn.

"No." Harakai answered flatly. Lenz noticed his voice had become was deeper and mechanical.

"You are required for your expertise and ability with the sentinel any other factors are of second importance." Harakai growled back in his mechanical voice. He sighed, paused and continued in his jovial tone. "The advantage of this is that the mechanicus has deeper pockets than the guard." There was an interested murmur at this. "Your pay will increment based on progress." He nodded to Camran's raised hand.

"Progress?" Camran asked. "Progress in what?"

Harakai grinned and a mechandentrite snaked into a socket on the wall. A screen illuminated showing the image of the sentinel. "This is the lucius pattern sentinel. The version that you pilot, the main reason that you are here is because this version possesses more efficient drive mechanisms at the expense of automated walking mechanisms. You Pilots manually move the legs of the sentinel with hand and foot pedals and with great skill I might add, to the point where tales of two of you dancing a slow tango after a successful mission. Everyone grinned at Camran and Caito, who smirked impishly. "That is apparently true?" Harakai asked incredulously when he saw everyone's expressions.

"Yes." Chuckled Camran. "We locked autocannons and we got the steps right although it wasn't properly in time." This raised a murmur of laughter.

"I shall have to see that." Chortled Harakai, he paused for a moment. "Right! Anyway, the reason why your skills are needed it that I am running an augmentation operation." The guardsmen just looked confused. "I'm going to improve the sentinel." Clarified Harakai.

The men just stared at him. "Wh- how?" stuttered Hanorah

"I don't know. That's why you're here. You know its strengths and weaknesses, you tell me!"


End file.
